Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa
Meeting the True Guru, I am totally transformed. I've received the nine treasures — everything of value.
The great spiritual powers follow in my footsteps. I live inside my own home, within my own self.
The Unstruck Melody vibrates constantly within — the background sound of existence, always there, now heard.
My mind is uplifted. I am absorbed in love for the Lord.
Nanak says: devotion to the Lord lives in the minds of those with good destiny written on their foreheads.
The nine treasures
Nav nidhi pā'i bhoganā — "I have obtained the nine treasures to use and consume." The nava nidhi (nine treasures) in Indian tradition represent the complete set of blessings — all aspects of wealth and well-being. To receive the nine treasures is to receive everything that matters. Here Guru Amar Das says the meeting with the True Guru gave him everything.
Siddhis follow as side effects
Ridhā sidhā nit nāl — "the Siddhis — the eighteen supernatural spiritual powers — follow in my footsteps." The Siddhis (powers traditionally pursued by yogis — reading minds, levitation, invisibility, etc.) here follow the Gurmukh, uninvited. They are side effects, not goals. The one who pursues Siddhis gets nothing; the one who pursues the Guru gets everything including the Siddhis they weren't seeking.
The Unstruck Melody
Anhad shabad nijhāvne, man tan har sang mā'i — "the Unstruck Melody constantly vibrates within; my mind is exalted and uplifted." Anhad shabad (the unstruck sound, the sound that is not produced by striking) is the primordial sound of existence — what the tradition describes as the background vibration of reality, heard when all other noise stops. The Gurmukh hears this. It vibrates constantly within them, not as something they produce but as something they perceive when they are aligned.
"Living in your own home, within yourself"
Ghar māhi rahe ghari — "I dwell in my own home, within my own self." The final resting place is interior: the Gurmukh who has received all the treasures and heard the Unstruck Melody dwells within themselves. Home is not a location. It is a state of interior dwelling that is always available.
*What would it feel like to be completely at home in yourself — not needing to go anywhere, not needing anything else to arrive? Do you have glimpses of that?*
Translation by Dr. Sant Singh Khalsa·How we use AI